Benefits of immigration

As the current political discourse seems to revolve around the degree to which immigration is bad, I am going to go out on a limb in favor of immigrants. Setting aside the obvious fact that with the exception of native Americans, all of us are the decedents of immigrants, there are many reasons to embrace legal immigrants. From the most humble housekeeper to the most ambitious doctoral student, immigrants continually add to the American economy, tax base, and culture.

You probably wonâ€™t hear Lou Dobbs mention that most immigrants tend to be younger and more likely to participate in the workforce, hence contributing a disproportionate share of social security and medicare taxes. Rarely is it mentioned that immigrants are actually more law abiding than average as the consequences of an infraction could include deportation.

Finally, legal immigrants contribute enormously to our culture and enhance our international status and trading potential. Virtually every nation on earth is represented somewhere in America, and few around the world could not name a friend or relative who has emigrated to America. While I oppose illegal immigration, I do so from a standpoint of compassion and rule of law. It pains me to know that the weakest among us is taken advantage of and often put in danger of due to a lack sufficient documentation.

A rational analysis of our immigration policy would vastly increase the number of legal immigrants permitted to enter our country, while introducing meaningful penalties to employers who hire undocumented immigrants. Plentiful legal immigration should include people from a broader selection of countries around the world, and of a broader range of abilities.

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the naturalization ceremonies of my wife and her family, who were born in the former Soviet Union. I would ask the most strenuous opponents of immigration to attend one of these ceremonies. Anyone who has witnessed this cannot doubt that America is greater for their inclusion.

I agree immigrants can be beneficial. It would be nice to go to a naturalization ceremony of the immigrants who come here LEGALLY.
However those aren’t the ones that are the problem. It is the illegal aliens that are the problem.
It seems that is what people can’t seem to understand.
I don’t beleive anyone is arguing against legal immigration. Although if Bush, Kennedy, Salazar and their buddies have their way everyone will be legal. So now I guess we will lower our standards instead of enforcing the laws. If enough people start robbing banks I am sure it too will soon become legal. Let’s try.

kg

I agree immigrants can be beneficial. It would be nice to go to a naturalization ceremony of the immigrants who come here LEGALLY.
However those aren’t the ones that are the problem. It is the illegal aliens that are the problem.
It seems that is what people can’t seem to understand.
I don’t beleive anyone is arguing against legal immigration. Although if Bush, Kennedy, Salazar and their buddies have their way everyone will be legal. So now I guess we will lower our standards instead of enforcing the laws. If enough people start robbing banks I am sure it too will soon become legal. Let’s try.

Robert

I am for LEGAL immigration. My wife is a legal immigrant. What I know is that there is a process already in place for legal immigration. We used it! We have laws that nobody wants to enforce, but they too are there. Bush saying that if we don’t pass this bill is returning to the status quo. Well, why not just enforce the laws that we already have? Why can’t those from south of our border use the same process to come here that the rest of the world uses? They can. Nothing is preventing them! Does anybody really think that those currently violating our laws will stop doing so when we have new laws? Come on. Get real! The status quo will continue with or without this terrible bill. There is nothing wrong with the current system — it works. I know first hand. This proposed piece of Amnesty is a Travesty. Check it out for yourself. Read Senator Jeff Sessions report on it at http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=20%20loopholes%20immigration&ei=UTF-8

Robert

I am for LEGAL immigration. My wife is a legal immigrant. What I know is that there is a process already in place for legal immigration. We used it! We have laws that nobody wants to enforce, but they too are there. Bush saying that if we don’t pass this bill is returning to the status quo. Well, why not just enforce the laws that we already have? Why can’t those from south of our border use the same process to come here that the rest of the world uses? They can. Nothing is preventing them! Does anybody really think that those currently violating our laws will stop doing so when we have new laws? Come on. Get real! The status quo will continue with or without this terrible bill. There is nothing wrong with the current system — it works. I know first hand. This proposed piece of Amnesty is a Travesty. Check it out for yourself. Read Senator Jeff Sessions report on it at http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=20%20loopholes%20immigration&ei=UTF-8

reagon

I am for leagal immigration also. if the laws change then we can accept people jumping over our borders at will. I was to sit a tent up in your yard you would call the police and have me arrested. would you like it if the judge I went before let me keep it there. If I stole your children’s lunch would you like it?????? When I can’t get a job in my feild (which by the way is construction) some one done that to me. I don’t care where they came from send them home asia africa mexico get leagal!!!!

reagon

I am for leagal immigration also. if the laws change then we can accept people jumping over our borders at will. I was to sit a tent up in your yard you would call the police and have me arrested. would you like it if the judge I went before let me keep it there. If I stole your children’s lunch would you like it?????? When I can’t get a job in my feild (which by the way is construction) some one done that to me. I don’t care where they came from send them home asia africa mexico get leagal!!!!

jgd777

I find it hard to believe that people are still writing about the benefit of legal immigration, I am for a secured border and welcome legal immigration. Somehow people are missing the point I am for legal immigration but against illegal immigration. There is a huge difference between the immigrates who follow the immigration laws and the ones who feel they are above that law. HUGE DIFFERENCE
So please stop all of the letters about how great the legal immigrates are. This immigration (Amnesty) bill is about the illegal ones NOT the legal ones.

jgd777

I find it hard to believe that people are still writing about the benefit of legal immigration, I am for a secured border and welcome legal immigration. Somehow people are missing the point I am for legal immigration but against illegal immigration. There is a huge difference between the immigrates who follow the immigration laws and the ones who feel they are above that law. HUGE DIFFERENCE
So please stop all of the letters about how great the legal immigrates are. This immigration (Amnesty) bill is about the illegal ones NOT the legal ones.

cowboy

You people need to realize that our government is corrupt. We are being lead down a path that nobody wants to go down and it seems there is little we can do about it. QUIT BLAMING JUST BUSH. This was started long before Bush and has been going on through several Presidents and Congress and the Senate. We CANNOT RECALL our federal ellected officials, we just have to elect new ones at the end of two years, by then this will have been a done deal and too late to change. This immigration bill will destroy our nation and it was basically in the works three years before NAFTA was even signed. It’s called the NORTH AMERICAN UNION and was signed by Canada, America and Mexico. I am enclosing a link to CNN news that discusses immigration and this union that will destroy this nation, we need to do something about this fast or we will loose.

You people need to realize that our government is corrupt. We are being lead down a path that nobody wants to go down and it seems there is little we can do about it. QUIT BLAMING JUST BUSH. This was started long before Bush and has been going on through several Presidents and Congress and the Senate. We CANNOT RECALL our federal ellected officials, we just have to elect new ones at the end of two years, by then this will have been a done deal and too late to change. This immigration bill will destroy our nation and it was basically in the works three years before NAFTA was even signed. It’s called the NORTH AMERICAN UNION and was signed by Canada, America and Mexico. I am enclosing a link to CNN news that discusses immigration and this union that will destroy this nation, we need to do something about this fast or we will loose.

You people need to realize that our government is corrupt. We are being lead down a path that nobody wants to go down and it seems there is little we can do about it. QUIT BLAMING JUST BUSH. This was started long before Bush and has been going on through several Presidents and Congress and the Senate. We CANNOT RECALL our federal ellected officials, we just have to elect new ones at the end of two years, by then this will have been a done deal and too late to change. This immigration bill will destroy our nation and it was basically in the works three years before NAFTA was even signed. It’s called the NORTH AMERICAN UNION and was signed by Canada, America and Mexico. I am enclosing a link to CNN news that discusses immigration and this union that will destroy this nation, we need to do something about this fast or we will loose.

They are no longer illegal aliens or even illegal immigrants, they are now called “undocumented workers”, does this mean they are no longer illegal, not hardly, they are just trying to remove the word illegal to make it easier to “justify” this amnesty horror they are trying to perpitrate.

cowboy

They are no longer illegal aliens or even illegal immigrants, they are now called “undocumented workers”, does this mean they are no longer illegal, not hardly, they are just trying to remove the word illegal to make it easier to “justify” this amnesty horror they are trying to perpitrate.

cowboy

They are no longer illegal aliens or even illegal immigrants, they are now called “undocumented workers”, does this mean they are no longer illegal, not hardly, they are just trying to remove the word illegal to make it easier to “justify” this amnesty horror they are trying to perpitrate.

Vincent Carroll is The Denver Post's editorial page editor. He has been writing commentary on politics and public policy in Colorado since 1982 and was originally with the Rocky Mountain News, where he was also editor of the editorial pages until that newspaper gave up the ghost in 2009.

Guidelines: The Post welcomes letters up to 150 words on topics of general interest. Letters must include full name, home address, day and evening phone numbers, and may be edited for length, grammar and accuracy.

To reach the Denver Post editorial page by phone: 303-954-1331

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